Michael Geller's Blog

Saturday, February 17, 2018

Every once in a while my columns generate a lot of feedback. This is one of them. Check out some of the comments I have received following the column.

Have you noticed vehicle headlights getting brighter?At first, I thought the problem was my advancing years. But having
been recently blinded by a shiny new Mercedes driving down Blenheim
Street, I pulled over and Googled “are car headlights too bright?” I was
pleased to read I am not the only one concerned about the intensity of
new headlights.

From an online forum: “Is it my eyes or are some car headlights too
bright?” And the LA Times: “It’s not your imagination, headlights are
getting brighter.”
From the UK Daily Mail: “Wondering why headlights are so painfully blinding?”
From CBS in New York: “Drivers say bright headlights are creating a dangerous situation.”
At a time when car accidents and insurance rates are in the news, I
can’t help but believe blinding headlights may be causing some
accidents.
My wife and I both drive cars with bright new headlights. I know
because occasionally drivers flash their high beams assuming I’m on high
beams, when I am not.
As we debate how best to reduce vehicle accidents and insurance
costs, I hope ICBC will investigate whether blinding headlights are
causing not only discomfort for motorists, but also accidents.
Blinding headlights are not my only traffic concern.
No doubt due to increasing traffic congestion and longer commutes, an increasing number of drivers are running red lights.
At the same time, many motorists oppose installation of more
red-light cameras, or 24-hour operation of the 140 cameras currently in
place at the province’s most accident-prone intersections.
That’s right. Currently, many red-light cameras are only operated
six hours a day since previous governments did not want to upset voters.
Listening to a recent radio phone-in program, I was disturbed by how
many listeners opposed red-light cameras, even at dangerous
intersections. Presumably, they equate them with photo radar, which was
often viewed as a cash cow, rather than accident prevention.
Given the increasing number of traffic accidents and fatalities, and
yes, increasing insurance costs, I think it is time to rethink our
attitudes towards enforcing the rules of the road.
Perhaps we should follow the lead of Scotland and implement a safety
camera program that operates both speed and red-light cameras across
the country. Scottish red-light cameras are programed to not only catch
those running red lights, but also speeding drivers.
This brings me to an alternative to intersections and red lights. Traffic roundabouts and circles.
Having lived in the U.K. and driven in many European countries, I am
a fan of roundabouts. I even installed two at SFU’s UniverCity.
However, every time I approach a small Vancouver traffic circle, which
is essentially a glorified uncontrolled intersection, I worry whether
oncoming drivers know who has the right-of-way.
In case you are not sure, if two vehicles arrive at a traffic circle
or roundabout at the same time, the vehicle on the right has the right
to enter first. Cyclists should be treated like a vehicle.
The recent revelations about increased traffic accidents and major
ICBC losses due to injury claims were very disturbing. They were also
somewhat surprising.
Since cars are increasingly designed with safety in mind, with
multiple air bags, back-up cameras and side mirror warnings, I would
have expected the number of injuries to be reduced.
However, I have also observed that many motorists do not appear to
know how to drive properly. They stay in the passing lane and refuse to
pull over to allow other motorists to pass. While they may not be in
accidents, they cause accidents.
Others take little notice of upcoming pedestrian crossings, refuse
to stop before turning right on a red light, and seem to have forgotten
the concept of “defensive driving.”
One solution may be more regular road testing for drivers. My
generation hasn’t been tested since the 1960s. Perhaps it should be
mandatory for anyone deemed to have caused a serious accident to be
re-tested before they can drive again.
If Motor Vehicle Testing Stations do not have adequate capacity for
more regular road tests, ICBC could set up independent accredited
testers.
While no doubt many will see this as just another cash grab, I see it as a way to make driving safer.From David Faber, Vancouver (who advocates retesting every 5 years for those between 25 and 75 and annually for those under 25 and over 75)Michael,

I read with great interest your article in the lastest Vancouver Courier.

I was hit by a car on my bicycle in the fall of 2015 a few blocks
from where I live. i was on a designated bike route(East45th Avenue) and
the driver was going faster than the posted speed limit. Interesting
he had been in Canada for 6 years but was still driving with an out of
country license.

I contacted lots of people including municipal, provinicial and federal reps but got little response.

I will forward you an email I sent Nicholas Simons back in 2013. In
it is what I feel would be a great move to clear the streets of
inexperienced and uneducated motor vehicle drivers. This could also be a
good revenue generator for ICBC.

To give
you a bit of a history. I started driving in 1970 when I turned 16 in
Alberta. Our family business was about distribution and as soon as I got
my license I was behind the wheel. In my life I have put more than
1.75million km on the road in the 48 years of driving. Yes and been in
accidents where some have been my fault and some not my fault.

In 1981 I worked in Northern Alberta for Nova a pipeline company.
They had a policy that if an employee got a motor vehicle into an
accident be it car, truck, back-hoe, ski-doo etc, you had to go back to
Calgary and take a two week safe drivers course and pass both the
written and road test. It happened to me and when I went back in the
class was labourers, skid operators, landscapers and office personnel
including a couple of executives.

We
had to go out with the instructor for a pre-class road test and then
were given our results. I was amazed at how many bad habits I had
accumulated in the 10 years of driving. After taking the refresher
course and passing the tests I have tried to keep my driving bad habits
out of the picture.

Yes, retesting
should happen every 5 years for those between the ages of 25 and 75 and
annually for those under 25 and over 75.

Talk soon. David F(devo) Faber

From a former Vancouver bus driverHello Michael,

I retired as a trolley bus driver in
Vancouver eight years ago, after almost 41 years behind the wheel. I
worked evenings most of the time, and car headlights were starting to
bother me a few years before I retired. When I started on the job in
1969, an oncoming car with high-beams on would dim their lights 9 times
out of 10 when I gave a quick flash of my high-beams. Now it is
reversed, and very few motorists will dim their lights. In fact, it is
often hard to tell if it is high or low beam, because the LED lights are
so intense. I drive a 1999 Subaru Forester with conventional lights,
and I almost never have oncoming cars flash their high-beams at me.

New
cars now have head lights and running lights that don’t even look like a
headlight. Some have designs in LED lights, and a particular model has
front marker lights above the headlights that look like eyebrows, and
angry ones at that. There is an animated film set to the music of
Autobahn, by Kraftwerk, put out over forty years ago. There are cars
that have angry faces, and I can’t help but think someone got the idea
of these marker lights from that film. Cue the video at 5:30 and you’ll
see what I mean:

A
new problem is that while stopped at a red traffic signal at night, the
LED brake lights of the car in front can be so bright that I have to
shield my eyes.

I have driven in many cities on
various trips, including Boston, Manhattan, Melbourne Australia, and
New Zealand. Everyone says: "Oh, our drivers are the worst.” But it is
all relative to each place. Seattleites complain that Vancouver drivers
are “pushy”, among other things. But you just have to adapt to each
place.

Once a week on Mondays I drive Highway 1
to Chilliwack mid-day. So what is wrong with Highway 1, other than a
few insta-merges, and a lack of guard rails? Not much really. But the
drivers are anything but defensive. The right lane has traffic generally
at about 100 km/hr, and the passing lane is more like 115 to 120. But
with heavy volume, the cars are all travelling at those speeds one car
length apart, or less. This includes trucks. Throw into this equation
those motorists who are travelling at 160, 180 or more, changing lanes
frequently, and the slightest miscalculation ends in smashups. I often
smell the nitro charger fumes on these cars as they pass.

Last
October I spent six days with a friend from Toronto visiting cities in
Ohio, and most of our travel was on interstate freeways. The speed
limit on most roads was 60 to 70 mph, and we were amazed to see
compliance. There just wasn’t anyone speeding the way we see here and on
Highway 401 in Ontario. But Ohio has a Highway Patrol that I would not
like to have to deal with. They were patrolling constantly, and at one
point just north of Dayton there were eight police cars lined up
together on the shoulder at right angles to the highway.

Another
thing that leads to accidents is the visitor, unfamiliar with the city
and its oddities. Vancouver has some of the smallest road advisory signs
I have seen. And some are posted too late to be of use. Sincerely, AM.

From Bev, another Courier reader Dear Michael;
I wonder why you would blame vehicle crashes (not accidents since they
are intentional), on bright lights when the truth is that drivers do
what they do because they can. There is no enforcement against bad
driving, the infrastructure favours drivers and the penalties are too
low if they are even applied.
You are right about ICBC. The good guys pay too much and the bad guys pay too little.
The police can be six feet from a serious driver infraction and claim
that they saw nothing. They, like the Mayor, say that walkers and
cyclists should ask permission to cross the road by making eye contact.
Peds. need to be sure to wear strobe lights as well.
Drivers are increasingly aggressive and entitled. Lots of data supports
that fact. Drivers think they should have exclusive use of the asphalt
at all times and resent any other mode accessing “their” space. They
rarely stop at an intersection without a light. They accelerate and honk
if a person dares to cross in front of them. And they do it because
they can.
Driving is serious business. It is the driver’s job to pay attention to
every thing at all times. Most Canadian drivers would not get a license
in Europe or Great Britain.
Drivers are at fault in conflicts with pedestrians 88% or the time, with motor cyclists 75%, and cyclists 70ish%.
The Mayor et al brag that pedestrian deaths are down. They are down
because of the health care system, not because of better driving. I bet
lots of those who were saved would rather have died than be in the shape
they are in now. An average of 600 walkers per year are hit. That
number has not gone down.
Engineers can fool around improving the infrastructure in the name of
safety for drivers like wider turning radii, wider, smoother roads and
left bays which in the end remove responsibility from the driver and let
them go farther, faster more conveniently at the expense of walkers,
cyclist and transit users.
Enforcement and punishment are the only things that will change behaviour. They are great educators.
I always enjoy your columns. Although sometimes I wonder about your
density/planning points. We ghettoize the rich from the poor. Diverse
housing stock would increase managed density and a diverse demographic
across the city which in turn should produce better social and
environmental outcomes.
Yours truly, Bev

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

For many years, my father (a former librarian) regularly cut out newspaper stories about housing in Vancouver, particularly when I was quoted. Over the years, I kept them in a scrapbook. While today Google Alerts have replaced newspaper clippings and scrapbooks, during the recent GVHBA Legends event, I mentioned to Joannah Connolly, editor of the Real Estate Weekly, that I had accumulated many newspaper clippings from Vancouver newspapers, including her paper. My favourite was one in which I urged people to start buying on the Eastside of Vancouver, since it was under priced compared to the Westside. She asked me to send them to her.
Unfortunately, I couldn't find that one, but below are a few that I did send to her.(She subsequently asked me for others.)
What
you might find interesting is that back in the 1980s and early 90s there was already a concern about foreign
buyers buying up residential units; we had a rental housing crisis not unlike today; the introduction of the GST
on real estate was a big deal, and at one point, I had to argue (on
behalf of UDI) that it apply to both new and resale homes, noting this would bring the GST down from 9% to 7%!
Other major topics included housing for
seniors, saving character and heritage homes, and the
future of single family neighourhoods.
In other words, there's not much
new under the sun! If you want to see more clippings, just let me know. I have books full of them!

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

While few ever accuse me of being bashful or overly modest, I must say I was a bit embarrassed when I learned tonight's GVHBA event to which I agreed to participate many months ago is in fact its annual 'Legends of Housing' dinner. https://gvhba.org/event/legends-of-housing/
And while I am proud of my 5 decades in the housing industry, dating back to days at CMHC in the early 1970s, my accomplishments pale in comparison with those of tonight's fellow Legends Eric Carlson (whose Anthem Properties last year purchased two of the most expensive development sites in Metro Vancouver) and Rob Macdonald whose business and financial successes are such that he could afford to donate almost $ one million to the NPA for a past election.
Anyone who has attended a UDI event when the outspoken Carlson and Macdonald have participated knows they are both very clever, witty, and extremely outspoken guys. For once, I'll be the quiet one in the corner.
The moderator is Kirk LaPointe, no wallflower himself, who many would like to see run for mayor on the NPA ticket; so tonight could be a very interesting and entertaining and potentially politically-charged event.
For the occasion, I'll be wearing the brand new CKNW socks which Lynda Steele gave me when I recently participated in an on-air housing debate with Tom Davidoff on her show. And who knows, if Davidoff's proposal to transform Canada's income tax and property tax systems is every realized, maybe one day he'll be a GVHBA legend!
Some information about this event can be found on the UDI website which also features a photo of a UDI panel that includes some real legends: Joe Segal, Bob Lee, and Joe Housain. (Bob Rennie is too young to be a legend, but he will be one day!) http://udi.memberzone.com/events/details/gvhba-legends-of-housing-dinner-1348
Thank you GVHBA for honouring me with this invitation. I'm very much looking forward to the evening.

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Attention Vancouver property owners!
Friday, Feb. 2 is the deadline by which you must submit a property
status declaration so that city officials can determine if your property
is subject to the Empty Homes Tax. Failure to declare will result in
your property being deemed vacant and subject to a tax of one per cent
of its assessed taxable value. For most West Side single-family
properties, that’s $30,000 or more. Every year.

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Every Vancouver homeowner must make a declaration, even those who
have lived in their homes for decades and assumed the tax only applied
to the vacant house down the street or empty apartment next door.
While the city’s desire to transform what it claims are 25,495 empty
or “under-utilized” dwellings into new rental units was
well-intentioned, as regular readers of this column know, I have long opposed how the city has introduced this tax bylaw.
From the onset, city lawyers knew from the experience in London and
other global jurisdictions that it is extremely difficult and expensive
to enforce a tax on vacant dwellings.
Consequently, Vancouver’s legal department drafted what many
regarded to be a very heavy-handed bylaw, which not only taxed owners of
truly empty dwellings, but also the owners of most second homes.
When a few of these second home owners, including a former Vancouver
doctor who had moved to Bowen Island but came into the city to work
part-time, complained about the impact of this tax, they were told by
city staff they had a choice. They could rent their homes or sell.
Since any intelligent person could appreciate these second homes
could not be rented out for a minimum 30 days at a time, this response
prompted me and others to suggest that, in effect, the tax was like a
jealousy tax, to appease voters who could not afford one home, let alone
two.
Nonetheless, the city refused to amend the bylaw. As a result, many
of these homeowners, including a former MLA and B.C. mayor, have offered
their properties for sale since they are not prepared to pay such a
punitive tax.
These homes will not suddenly become rental properties, and I am
willing to bet my house that this tax will not result in anywhere near
the tens of thousands of rental properties that the mayor, and other
misguided souls, predict will come onto the market.
The unreasonableness of this tax was recently illustrated by the
case of a vacant lot owner who was told she too would have to pay the
tax. This despite the fact the lot had always been vacant.
When she complained to city staff, she was told to apply for a
permit and build a house on the property. Who knew it was also an empty
lot tax?
As this column was about to go to press, the mayor held a press
conference to provide an update on the tax. At the conference, media
were told that 11 per cent or 21,000 Vancouver homeowners have not yet
submitted their declarations.
When the mayor and city chief financial officer were asked how many
of the 89 per cent of homeowners who had responded said their properties
were vacant, we were somewhat amused when the CFO claimed the city did
not yet have this information. Really?
While I remain opposed to aspects of the Empty Home Tax, especially
its application to second homes, I decided to offer two suggestions to
help the city recoup some of the $7.4 million it says the program is now
estimated to cost to administer.
Since I suspect many owners of truly vacant properties are going to
lie about their status, I suggested the city implement something akin to
the Crime Stoppers program to encourage the public to anonymously
provide tips about vacant properties, especially those that could serve
as rental housing.
I subsequently learned there already is a smartphone app to report vacant dwellings.
I also suggested city staff liaise with the garbage collection
department since if anyone knows which single-family houses are empty,
it’s the waste collectors.
The CFO acknowledged they hadn’t thought of this, but agreed it was a good idea.
I am pleased to help.

Last week I left my office for a few days with Claire and Sally to join my other daughter Georgia in Napa Valley. She had been in San Francisco for a conference and suggested a family vacation away from the Vancouver rain. It was an excellent idea.On Georgia's suggestion we booked into the Silverado Resort .https://www.silveradoresort.com/ She suggested it since it is close to Napa and has two golf courses. One is used each year for the PGA Safeway Open event.

While we were not aware of this when we booked, the property was damaged in last year's fires. we were told that ever since, reservations have been down

While there are much fancier resorts in the area, this one was very comfortable and good value. We had a two bedroom 'cottage' which was really the lower level of a two level townhouse. Parking was right in front. Somewhat surprisingly, we had to drive from the main building to our unit since Silverado is a very, very large property.

At first I thought these turkeys on the grounds were public art, until they started to move!

I think this local resident was a bit embarrassed when she say me start to take a photo of her walking the dog....in a golf cart

Located just an hour north of San Francisco, in addition to the golf courses it offers a spa, 13
lighted tennis courts, and biking and hiking trails. It's also close to more than 400 wineries, but don't expect a lot of good cheap wine. For that you have to go to Europe!.

This was the Duty Free price!

When my daughter offered to get me a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from the general store, she returned to the car after 5 minutes to see if a Merlot would be ok, since the least expensive Cab in the shop was over $40 US!

We were delighted to discover Quixote Winery designed by Hundertwasser

A glass of Educated Guess in the restaurant was $14, much more than one pays in Vancouver restaurants, but I must say it was very good. However when we visited the winery to buy a bottle, they didn't have the same vintage, and even I could tell the difference! If you haven't been to Napa, it can be a wonderful experience. While it's fabulous in the summer, I can also recommend an off-season January or February trip, since it's not so busy and you can take your time in the wineries. We discovered to our delight that we arrived just as they were celebrating the equivalent of a 'dine-out Vancouver' festival, which allowed us to enjoy some very good 3-course dinners for $46 and an exceptional 2-course lunch at the Michelin Star Auberge du Soleil https://aubergedusoleil.aubergeresorts.com/dining/ for....are you ready? $20! While we were subsequently told that it was impossible for mere mortals to get a reservation for this experience, Georgia figured out how to do it! For what it's worth..."The Restaurant at Auberge du Soleil offers a fine dining experience from
one of the best vantage points in the valley. With 11 consecutive
Michelin Stars, Executive Chef Robert Curry’s Mediterranean-inspired
cuisine reflects the natural diversity and rich seasonal produce
available in the Napa Valley. Ingredients are sourced largely from local
and regional purveyors and featured on inspiring menus complemented by
one of most extensive wine cellars in the valley, boasting more than
15,000 bottles of domestic and international wines hand-selected by our
Director of Wine."

One of the many public art installations in Yountville

We didn't eat in the 3-star Michelin restaurant French Laundry which has its own farm across the street and a kitchen in a converted container

Other restaurants that we enjoyed and which we can recommend included Torc http://www.torcnapa.com/ where you could enjoy a 2 oz glass of Chateau d'Yquem for $53 (although I was disappointed that the wines accompanying the dine out menu included Austrian and French selections, not local) and Angele http://www.angelerestaurant.com/ where we had a very good French meal with particularly good service. While we passed on our friends Jim and Doria Moodie's suggestion to go to Morimoto Napa, we did also enjoy Basalt http://www.basaltnapa.com/

When I asked whether this brochure was in Japanese or Chinese, I was told it was Mongolian. Mongolian? I asked. Is the owner Mongolian? No she said, but we get a lot of people from China. Oh, I said. I think you mean Mandarin. Yes she said!

We are in California, after all!

It's not as old as it looks!

What's a castle without a moat?

One final suggestion. if you do decide to celebrate 'winter in the wineries' buy a Calistoga Wines Passport. It costs $60 but offers access to a considerable number of tastings (some of which are $25 to $35 on their own) including Sterling Vineyard where you take aerial tram from the parking lot to the very impressive winery, and Castello di Amorosa, a 136,000 sq.ft. 13th-century Tuscan-styled castle,

This is a must see destination.

and the 1882 Chateau Montelena Winery whose chardonnay won the famous 1976 Paris tasting, which many believe put Californian wines on the world map. (A Stag's Leap Cabernet also won a medal that year). One of the reasons I was happy to do this trip and experience resort living was to prepare for a design workshop at Furry Creek the following weekend. That is now over, and I'll report on it in due course. But the fact is, many of the lifestyle experiences that made California so famous will soon be available in British Columbia. And if climate change happens the way many predict, our wines will also beat the French wines in blind tastings in years to come.

Thursday, January 25, 2018

Much to his dad and mum's dismay
Horace ate himself one day
He didn't stop to say his grace
He just sat down and ate his face
"We can't have this!" his dad declared
"If that lad's ate he should be shared"
But even as he spoke they saw
Horace eating more and more:
First his legs and then his thighs,
His arms, his nose, his hair, his eyes
"Stop him someone!" Mother cried
"Those eyeballs would be better fried!"
But all too late for they were gone,
And he had started on his dong...
"Oh foolish child!" the father mourned
"You could have deep-fried those with prawns,
Some parsely and some tartar sauce..."
But H was on his second course;
His liver and his lights and lung,
His ears, his neck, his chin, his tongue
"To think I raised himn from the cot
And now he's gone to scoff the lot!"
His mother cried what shall we do?
What's left won't even make a stew..."
And as she wept her son was seen
To eat his head his heart his spleen
And there he lay, a boy no more
Just a stomach on the floor...
None the less since it was his
They ate it - and that's what haggis is

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

What should the B.C. government be doing to create more affordable
housing in Vancouver? This is a question I, and many other so-called
housing experts, are being asked daily as we await next month’s
provincial budget.
Given that the Liberal government lost the last
election because it paid insufficient attention to housing
affordability, British Columbians are hoping for many housing
announcements in the budget. But really, what can, or should the B.C.
government, be doing to make housing more affordable for residents
throughout the Vancouver region, and elsewhere in the province?
During
the election campaign, the NDP promised to introduce an annual,
two-per-cent tax on foreigners who buy B.C. property but don’t pay tax
here. They estimated this would generate $200 million a year to fund
affordable housing. While I don’t disagree with the proposal, here are
two other ways to free-up more funds for affordable housing: Overhaul
the Homeowner Grant and Property Tax Deferral programs.
While I’m
told it’s political suicide to end grants to 92 per cent of B.C.
homeowners, I think it’s time to phase out the Homeowner Grant Program
and redirect the money to those in greater need. To begin, why not
establish different price thresholds for regions around the province?
Surely it makes sense to differentiate between Kerrisdale and Castlegar,
where $1.65 million buys one of the nicest houses in town.
Secondly,
why is this program not means-tested? This could be accomplished in
part by making the grant a taxable benefit, rather than tax-free.
While
the Property Tax Deferral Program may be necessary for low-income
seniors wanting to stay in their homes, it too should become
income-tested. Far too many, who can afford to pay property taxes, take
advantage of cheap provincial loans, currently at less than one per
cent.
While directing funds saved from these programs into rent
subsidies for the needy, and low-interest loans for non-profit housing
would be beneficial, there is much more the province can do.
Ten
years ago, during Vancouver’s municipal election campaign, I first
promoted the idea of setting up temporary modular housing for the
homeless on public and privately owned vacant land. Thankfully, the
government is now promoting this idea through a provincewide program.
However, relocatable modular housing could accommodate a much broader
range of households seeking affordable homes.
The province could
encourage this housing by offering property-tax relief to owners of
vacant lots, just as it now does for those creating community gardens.
Instead of growing expensive tomatoes, these properties could
accommodate one-, two- and three-bedroom homes for millennials who might
otherwise leave the province.
We often hear that one way to
create more affordable housing is to increase supply. While I agree with
those who argue we also need the right supply, a major challenge facing
private and non-profit developers is obtaining zoning, development and
building-permit approvals. They really do take too long, and cost too
much.
While the responsibility for approvals generally rests with
municipal government, except for the City of Vancouver, municipalities
are legislated by the Municipal Act. Why should it often take a year or
more to approve a single-family house or three years to approve rental
apartments?
To speed up approvals, there is an urgent need to
review and overhaul our current planning and approval procedures through
Municipal Act amendments, wherever necessary.
One way to
accelerate approvals would be for the province to encourage a greater
role for Independent Certified Professionals in the issuance of
development and building permits. Regular audits could be carried out to
ensure zoning bylaws and codes are being met.
Another factor
contributing to the high cost of new housing is the Community Amenity
Contributions (CACs), which are usually charged by municipalities
whenever a property is rezoned.
Four years ago, the provincial
Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development, in consultation
with local governments, the development and building sectors, and legal
and academic communities, prepared a document titled, Community Amenity
Contributions: Balancing Community Planning, Public Benefits and Housing
Affordability. It was well-researched and thoughtful, and put forward
many sound recommendations. Sadly, it appears to have been all but
ignored or forgotten.
As CACs, combined with other municipal fees
and charges often exceed the cost of land, it’s time for the province to
play a role in insisting that municipalities abide by the
recommendations set out in this document.
Sadly, even if all these
suggestions were implemented, the cost of renting or buying a home in
B.C. will continue to be out reach for too many. However, by combining
long-term promises with practical, short-term solutions, B.C. can play
an important role in increasing affordable housing in years to come.Michael
Geller is a Vancouver-based architect planner, property consultant and
developer with five decades of experience in the public and private
sectors. He also serves on the adjunct faculty at SFU. His blog is found
at gellersworldtravel.blogspot.ca and he can be reached at geller@sfu.ca.